Last Friday I was a call-in guest on the WMNF Rob Lorei show in Tampa, Florida. I answered many questions about the LP in general, as well as about Congressman Ron Paul, who was the 1988 LP nominee for president.

Last week I issued a statement that included a criticism of Texas Governor Rick Perry's support for toll roads. Several people asked for an explanation about my stance on toll roads and I can understand why.

The Libertarian Party platform says "We seek to divest government of all functions that can be provided by non-governmental organizations or private individuals." Private toll roads could fit that bill. Some free-market think tanks have promoted toll roads as a positive option.

I'm sure you have heard the news about the Standard & Poor's downgrade of the U.S. government's credit rating.

I'm not a finance expert, so I don't know exactly how important the downgrade itself is. I think it's one more sign of what Libertarians have known for a long time: the Democrats and Republicans have created a giant welfare-warfare state that is beginning to collapse under its own weight. And I see no sign that they are going to change their behavior.

During a visit to Buenos Aires on a concert tour, Libertarian Party of Texas (LPT) state chair Pat Dixon met with the recently established Partido Liberal Libertario (PL, www.partidoliberal.org.ar). Dixon discussed experiences he has had as a local and state leader of the Libertarian Party, a national committee member, and a twice elected candidate for local office.

If elected, Barker plans to push for repeal of the 2 percent food tax, which took effect April 2010 and is to expire in 2015. The food tax, estimated to generate $50 million in annual revenue for the city, was adopted when the city faced a general-fund budget shortfall of more than $270 million for the 2010-11 fiscal year.

The Libertarian Party is America's third largest political party, founded in 1971. Our vision is for a world in which all individuals can freely exercise the natural right of sole dominion over their own lives, liberty and property by building a political party that elects Libertarians to public office, and moving public policy in a libertarian direction.